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There is no quarterback controversy at Penn State this week, no mystery who will take the most meaningful snaps as long as he is able.

There might not be another one for years.

True freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg and the Nittany Lions will make their Beaver Stadium debut today at noon against upset-minded Eastern Michigan.

Just the second true freshman to open the season as Penn State's starting quarterback, Hackenberg threw for 278 yards and a pair of touchdowns to junior Allen Robinson and former Wyoming Valley West star Eugene Lewis against Syracuse in a season-opening 23-17 win.

He said he's hoping his second go-round against the Eagles won't start as slowly as his first one against the Orange, which saw him gain more confidence as the game progressed.

"I felt more comfortable," Hackenberg said. "As a freshman coming in, the first snap is always big. But once we got that out of the way, I got pumped up, and we were able to move the ball."

But as his two interceptions - one of which directly resulted in a Syracuse touchdown - evidenced, Hackenberg has a ways to go before he's the type of quarterback head coach Bill O'Brien believes he can be.

A believer in the old Joe Paterno credo that the biggest improvement a team makes usually comes between its first and second game, O'Brien said he's expecting a cleaner, more organized game from his team this week, and that includes his new star quarterback.

"I was definitely nervous," Hackenberg said. "The guys really helped me through that. But once the game starts, at the end of the day, it's just football. They've been there. They told me what it was like."

O'Brien said that he needed to be better, that the easiest way to help Hackenberg improve quickly is to learn how he ticks. For example, O'Brien said he had coached him often in practice, but last Saturday showed him a lot about how Hackenberg handles himself and needs to be coached during a game.

The second-year head coach said he'll need to do a better job of putting Hackenberg in positions to succeed, and in return the quarterback will have to stay within his own abilities - not to mention the system's - against an Eastern Michigan defense that likes to play aggressively.

"It's one game, and he needs to make improvement," O'Brien said. "We spent a lot of time in the film room (Monday) showing these guys the tape, and I personally spent a lot of time with Christian, showing him the mistakes that he made and where he's got to improve week-to-week.

"He's got a great demeanor, great poise. He's a smart guy, fun to coach and he'll improve."

Head coach Ron English's team needed two late touchdowns to beat Football Championship Subdivision opponent Howard, 28-24, in its opener last week.

Against Penn State, the Eagles will have a chance to win a second consecutive game against a nonconference foe from the Football Bowl Subdivision - they beat Army last season - for the first time in 25 years.

But English knows that won't be easy for a program that has never beaten a Big Ten school in 31 tries.

"I think they're going to do what they do," English said of Penn State.

"I've been watching that whole situation since (O'Brien) took the job. I don't know if anybody can do a better job than he has done. I think he's very smart. They're very sound in what they do offensively."

Contact the writer: dcollins@timesshamrock.com

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